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April 2013 www.sname.org/sname/mt (in review) REVIEWED BY RICH MOUK This book is a fine account of the life, career, and accomplish- ments of William Francis Gibbs. Historian Steven Ujifusa, who lives in Philadelphia and serves on the Advisory Council of the SS United States Conservancy there, delivers a thought- ful biography of Gibbs and, along the way, a satisfying overview of passenger ship design and construction in the United States and Europe over the past century. A Man and His Ship is presented as two books?: The Man and The Vision? and Building the Dream.? The first follows Gibbs from his youth as the son of a wealthy Philadelphian, through his training to become a naval architect (with a detour into law), to the founding of his rm and the success of his initial designs. e book covers the re-emergence of Americas place in ship design and construction after a lull in the years following the tran- sition from sail to steam, leading up to and following World War I. ere is good analysis of the politics shaping the emer- gence of a revitalized marine industry in America in the years between the world wars. e books second part focuses on the politics, economics, and technology behind the building of United States .Ujifusa has been remarkably thorough in his research: the footnotes ll 44 pages, the index 19. Footnotes make reference to his access to the private libraries of marine historians and societies and to the records of rms in the industry, as well as to the broad spectrum of books and articles (popular and technical) he digested. He is prudent in his use of technical ter- minology?he doesnt overdo it when a more common word will do?and the editing is crisp (other than the use of the word gunnel? in one place and gunwale? in another). On a technical level, Ujifusa does not go too far in explor- ing exactly what made this ship exceptional in her day. United States was heavily subsidized by government funds, since she was designed for conversion to a troop ship in the event of another global war, so there were details of design (how bul- bous the bow, for one) and performance (the extent to which her actual top speed exceeded that needed to capture the Blue Riband of the Atlantic) that did not see light until after her retirement. is is a strength in such a book, as more detail might go over the heads of casual readers or incite second guessing among the more technically savvy, neither of which contributes to a good read. Unlike some similar books, A Man and His Ship does not confuse the greatness of an ocean liner with the fame of her passengers, even in the accompanying photographs of life on board. is attests to the seriousness of one of the pur- poses behind this book: support for the preservation of the SS United States . e movie stars and royalty are gone (or cross the Atlantic in hours instead of days), but this great ship?though tired and bruised?is still with us. Ujifusas membership in the conservancy and the strength of his writing attest to his pas- sion for this great lady. MTRich Mouk works with the SNAME headquarters sta. A Man and His Ship: Americas Greatest Naval Architect and His Quest to Build the S.S. United States By Steven Ujifusa PUBLISHED BY SIMON & SCHUSTER Mechanical Engineering Principles By John Bird and Carl Ross PUBLISHED BY ROUTLEDGE REVIEWED BY RAYMOND L. MATHEWSON, JR. The preface of this second edition opens with the question, Why are engineers so vital?? and goes on to state Engineering is among the most important of all professions,? fol- lowed by thrilling and inspiring examples of contributions made to humankind by engineers. e preface alone is worth the price of this book. Mechanical Engineering Principles is an excellent student reference for a review of fundamental engineering concepts studied at the undergraduate college level. In addi- tion, the worked example problems are an excellent resource for instructors to explain the various engineering concepts. e book is divided into four major parts: Revision (review) of Mathematics, Statics and Strength of Materials, Dynamics, and Heat Transfer and Fluid Mechanics. ese four parts contain chapters covering specic topic areas. e layout of each chapter includes a review of the specic topic theory, followed immediately by worked numerical example problems. ese are, in turn, followed by quiz problems and test questions with answers in the back of the book. At regular intervals there are eight revision (review) tests for the reader to check his or her understanding of the material. Part one, chapter one, Revisionary mathematics, is new to this second edition. e numerical values of the trigonomet- ric functions of cosine, sine, and tangent, determined using a calculator, are introduced before these concepts are explained geometrically with the unit circle. e chapter covers the basic fundamental math concepts required for engineering analy- sis, but there is no review of calculus. Calculus is introduced in chapter eight to analyze the rst moment of area around a given axis. At this point, the authors refer the readers to one of their other publications regarding the solution using calculus. A